The rape of an 11-year-old girl by her mother's partner has sparked national outcry and protests in Chile. The girl's pregnancy has caused a debate on abortion after it was reported that the 14-week pregnancy is putting her life and the life of her unborn child at risk.
The Associated Press reported that her mother's partner confessed to abusing the fifth grader and was arrested by police in the southern city of Puerto Montt. Chile's TVN 24Horas identified the girl as "Belén." The girl's mother, who has a child with the abuser, has only testified once with police and is against his arrest, 24Horas reported.
According to the Daily Mail, the young girl is unable to get an abortion because it is illegal under any circumstance in Chile. Abortions due to medical reasons were allowed in the country until they were made illegal by the General Augusto Pinochet dictatorship in 1973.
The situation has led Chileans to flock social media to demand the legalization of abortion in cases of rape or health risks for the mother, the AP reported. However, the conservative government of President Sebastián Piñera has opposed loosening the law.
The Chilean Senate rejected three bills easing the abortion ban in the last couple of years. According to the AP, after one of the votes presidential aide Christian Larroulet said, "The Senate has voted in favor of life, of the unborn child, a policy the government has defended."
One of the bills that failed to pass would have allowed abortion in the event of a rape, while another would allow it if two doctors confirmed it risked the mother's life or other medical reason.
Marta Lagos, head of the Santiago-based pollster Mori, told the AP, "Chile is a country that has modernized when it comes to its economy, but when it comes to its social and political culture, it has become stagnant and this is seen with the abortion issue."
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